I wonder what would happen if we nitpicked m04 like m10

[Nintari]

Quote: Originally Posted by dickey1331

Going from the PS2 to PS3 or XBOX to XBOX 360 isnt the easiest thing to do. If Madden has had problems I wouldnt say the NFL exclusivity is the main problem, I think moving from last gen to this gen has been the bigger problem but thats just my opinion.

That's not true because APF had ZERO issues moving their game to the 360. Yes, it was bare bones, totally lacked features etc. but the gameplay on the field was amazing. The reason for this is VC kept their 2K5 engine and upgraded it for next gen. EA decided to create an entirely new one when they made the move to 360 so no one's to blame for that but them. It was an incredibly stupid move because it dug them into a hole for which they STILL can't get out of. They could have done the smart thing like VC and just upgraded their PS2 engine, but instead screwed everyone and their own franchise over. It's ALL on them.

Quote: Originally Posted by dickey1331

Have you played the game yet? Was the only good thing about Madden 10 the roster update? Im pretty sure it was a lot better than Madden 09.

The only thing significantly better imo was the presentation but even with that, it wasn't better then the presentation I witnessed WAY back in 2004 on the other game. So for me, it was like...meh, well atleast they tried. In the end, yes....for me, the new rosters was the best part of the game. Online franchise COULD have been amazing, but they dropped the ball on that.

Quote: Originally Posted by lgxjames

You made good points, but that little bold part is a little inaccurate, My decision this year is based on franchise...so seeing as of today there is NO known news about franchise I'm not leaning either way (technically I guess I'm leaning nay if you want to assume not much has changed from last year)

They've lost all credibility for me personally. Every single year, it's the same thing. So now it's like, I don't even listen to a word they say. Instead, I rent the game and that is the determining factor in whether or not I want to buy it.

These days, I assume the worst, hope for the best.

[dickey1331]

Quote: Originally Posted by Nintari

That's not true because APF had ZERO issues moving their game to the 360. Yes, it was bare bones, totally lacked features etc. but the gameplay on the field was amazing. The reason for this is VC kept their 2K5 engine and upgraded it for next gen. EA decided to create an entirely new one when they made the move to 360 so no one's to blame for that but them. It was an incredibly stupid move because it dug them into a hole for which they STILL can't get out of. They could have done the smart thing like VC and just upgraded their PS2 engine, but instead screwed everyone and their own franchise over. It's ALL on them.

They also had more than 1 year to make the move from 2K5 to 2K8. If you gave Madden a couple of years off to work on the game I bet it would be a lot better. You cannot expect to go from one gen to the next gen without taking a couple of years to get everything right. I see a lot of people complain saying this thing or that thing was in Madden last gen. Well we aren’t in last gen and the PS2/XBOX are different than the PS3/360. Maybe there are very good reasons why somethings are left out. Im pretty sure most of the people on this board do not know how to make a video game, let alone a "sim" sports game.

[veritas1]

Quote: Originally Posted by dickey1331

They also had more than 1 year to make the move from 2K5 to 2K8. If you gave Madden a couple of years off to work on the game I bet it would be a lot better.

It's been 5 years. How long do they need?...

[TheWatcher]

Quote: Originally Posted by dickey1331

Yeah thats true but I believe that Ian and Co do care and want to make the perfect fooball game like for example Russell and Co with the Show. Madden made a lot of improvment from 09 to 10 and Im hoping they continue in that direction with 11.

I know they care, I've been there, I've met them. But caring is not enough. Getting it done is what it's all about.

I think they genuinely do want to put those games of the past to rest, but they appear to be unaware that the way they're going about it is a problem that's preventing them from ever realizing that goal, and that they're doomed to keep hearing the same complaints every year unless they somehow change.

[TheWatcher]

Quote: Originally Posted by dickey1331

They also had more than 1 year to make the move from 2K5 to 2K8. If you gave Madden a couple of years off to work on the game I bet it would be a lot better. You cannot expect to go from one gen to the next gen without taking a couple of years to get everything right. I see a lot of people complain saying this thing or that thing was in Madden last gen. Well we aren’t in last gen and the PS2/XBOX are different than the PS3/360. Maybe there are very good reasons why somethings are left out. Im pretty sure most of the people on this board do not know how to make a video game, let alone a "sim" sports game.

2K didn't work on football for the whole 3 years leading up to 2K8. I spoke to the developers during that cycle, and I was told that critical parts of the development of 2K8 took place in a 6-month period, the rest of the other time was mostly about throwing ideas around. Basically, they'd work on it some then put it aside for a little bit, then work on it some more, etc.

With Madden, the gen-jump excuse wore out its validity years ago now. Madden 10 I thought was a good game, but it's still years behind where it should be. Excuses just aren't acceptable anymore, and certainly not when there are a handful of other franchises--sports and otherwise--that are doing things above and beyond what Madden has been giving us.

[Swingking77]

Acutely this thread is JUST for me... A while back I had asked what game to get as far as older games in the series were concerned. Nobody had come forward with 2004... But I had heard that last gen was the way to go…


That being said, 2004 is quite sublime when compared to 2010 for many reasons which I’ll state in my own view of things (opinions).


1^st: Freedom! Whatever you wanted to do, you could do it. You want a DB as a WR, FINE! You wanted a FB as a QB, FINE! You wanted to put anyone anywhere, FINE! And you know what, it didn’t break anything, and the end results were still pretty much what you’d expect in those situations is the players didn’t have the right skill sets for those positions.


2^nd: The simplistic nature in which the game can be played and options used truly make for a FUN game. There was no “hit stick” or “highlight stick”, there was no “possession catch” or “highlight catch”… If a player’s ratings were high enough, he just did those things in the right situations to do it in. Simple! And it let you focus on the games at hand. Making changes on the D side of things was ALSO very simple as well, though it did lack a few things like flipping plays, but again, that was part of the strategy. And it used the old style of controls which I always preferred myself.


3^rd: Smaller playbooks. People will look at this and say “WHAT HOW’S THAT A GOOD THING!” Well, every team has plays which allow that team to play a certain way. It isn’t that there are less plays in the game so much; just that it limits the plays to what that team generally runs in most situations, kind of like in Head Coach. So not every team is going to have that one gimme play or formation. Some people may not agree, and that’s fine, but the overall feel of each team is greatly improved with the smaller playbooks.


4^th: Ratings mattered. It’s only now that we’re seeing the ratings come into play in this gen. Though there were fewer ratings in 2004, they did more. Agility not only affected running, but also route running and man coverage as well. Most of all of the ratings had logical applications which translated into great and fun game play.


5^th: Franchise… We don’t even have to talk about it. It’s better, we know it and that’s that!


6^th: The “gimmick” that year was “Playmaker”. And you know what, it was fantastic! Know how the AI can’t ever pick the right option routes on passing plays with options… You can choose ‘em where and when you want. Know how the AI can’t ever pick the right guy to block on running plays? Again, you can pick ‘em as you want, and this did wonders for the special teams game! The D didn’t really get a lot, but it allowed you to choose between going hard after the run or dropping back a bit for the pass, which is VERY effective… I’m saddenend now that they did away with this feature as it really did add a lot to the game.


7^th: The blocking and rushing were pretty much perfect nearly 80% of the time. Which was more than enough for me.


8^th: QB play really was pretty good. If you set the accuracy down, it made scrambling very hard to do and your QB has to play their feet in order to throw the ball… And in order to throw on the move you have to hide the passing icons which really balanced that whole fiasco down… And even then, the passes after moving a lot would go astray more often than not. And the ball had trajectory to it so stupid LBs wouldn’t pick off 40 yard bombs…


Really, so far, replaying 2004 has been one of the funnest things I’ve done with a football game in a long time. It just feels right. There may be some issues with it, like the rocket catch, but guess what, that’s still pretty much in the game today… Overall, if we had a game like 2004 from EA this year, I’d be sold. But I feel that the push for online this and online that, when many parts of the game are still lacking is seriously hurting the franchise as a whole. Give the online stuff a rest and focus on offline until it’s perfect and fun, then take what you’re done so well in offline and bring it to online… It’s really that simple. For far too long the focus has been on player polish like cleats, masks, towels and junk like that... The players that I would like the focus to turn to are the ones playing the game, not the ones in the game... You want photo realistic details that don't do a single thing, get a photo!

P.S. I got it for 1$!!!

[lgxjames]

Quote: Originally Posted by Swingking77

For far too long the focus has been on player polish like cleats, masks, towels and junk like that... The players that I would like the focus to turn to are the ones playing the game, not the ones in the game... You want photo realistic details that don't do a single thing, get a photo! P.S. I got it for 1$!!!

In no defense to EA/Madden...I get your general direction but it seem your neglecting the fact that it's someones job to have that stuff in/or accurate. Just as there is a team responsible for gameplay and josh is in control of franchise, there is someone who is the art director (or whatever his title is) and he has nothing to do with how gameplay is programmed.

A video game is suppose to be a total package, some people are gameplay nuts, some franchise and best believe there are those graphics nuts and those people are vocal about how the game looks just like alot of people here are vocal about how the game plays or franchise is implemented, Can't be mad because someone's job is to make the game look realistic and authenic

[Swingking77]

Quote: Originally Posted by lgxjames

In no defense to EA/Madden...I get your general direction but it seem your neglecting the fact that it's someones job to have that stuff in/or accurate. Just as there is a team responsible for gameplay and josh is in control of franchise, there is someone who is the art director (or whatever his title is) and he has nothing to do with how gameplay is programmed. A video game is suppose to be a total package, some people are gameplay nuts, some franchise and best believe there are those graphics nuts and those people are vocal about how the game looks just like alot of people here are vocal about how the game plays or franchise is implemented, Can't be mad because someone's job is to make the game look realistic and authenic

But you see, that's faulty logic... When the product is faulty, and it is on most levels hence the title updates, glitches and lack of features once present in previous versions...

Imagine Madden were a car... The graphics guys are the guys who make the knobs, the speedometer, the radio's display, and all of those little details that go into the car.

The fundamental problem is that year after year, the car being produced doesn't drive or steer (playability issues), the radio doesn't work (presentation), sometimes it doesn't start (game freeze issues) and you can't get anything but an 8-track player (poor announcing)... But every year, they've got new buttons (towels, cleats, masks, patches, etc.) and they increase the seating (online features) with no new safety features for those passengers (online cheese plays, glitches, etc.) and bring back fuzzy dice (Super Star mode)...

Sersiouly, would that be a car that you would buy?

In this case, seating capacity for me isn't an issue because I want my passengers to be SAFE and have a FUN ride. The car doesn't drive, so all of the buttons and what not are for not... And the complementary fuzzy dice, well they'd be gone the second I got into that car, fresh scent be damned. I wouldn't buy a car that I can only steer like those cheap remote controlled cars that only go in a straight line and only turn one way in reverse... But that's just me.

Ask the American auto industry how a lack of proper products on a competitve market worked for them. But unlike the auto market, EA is the only one making this kind of game... At this time.

All that to say... Madden '04 is a fantastic game. I'm playing it all the way through and I can't get enough of it. The graphics are not as pretty (it is previous gen... Keep that in mind) but the animations are great, the playability is great, the stats I get from games are pretty fantastic, the passing works great, the receivers make plays on the sidelines, and stuff that I shouldn't have to tell the CPU to do, are done for me simply because of who the players are... If we could, in some way, get '04 to look like 11... You would never hear of anyone crying... Seriously. At it's core, it's a serious game. The polish isn't there, but everything the game should be good at, it is...

BTW, the suction blocking/tackles comments on this thread are BS! I have yet to have one of my RBs get sucked BACKWARDS towards a guy going to make a tackle. And I have yet to see a Dlineman get sucked into a Olineman... In fact, line play is super fun in this game.